1. Technical Field
The present disclosure relates to disinfection by UV light technology.
2. Introduction
Germs in the home, especially the kitchen and bathroom, are prevalent even with diligent attempts to keep the home clean. According to an article by Dr. Joseph Mercola1 on Mercola.com, “Despite good efforts by most to keep their homes germ free over 65% of colds, 50% of all cases of diarrhea and 50% to 80% of food-borne illnesses are caught in the home, and common household items are often to blame.” There are more than 250 known food-borne diseases, according to Rich Maloof2 (MSN Health & Fitness) and include botulism, listeria, hepatitis A, salmonella and E-Coli. The most germ-laden room in the home is the kitchen, the germiest items are the sponge, wash rags/cloths, dishtowels, and the germiest spot is the kitchen sink (not the toilet).
Sponges, rags and towels have a damp environment, which allows bacteria to thrive. “Bacteria colonies with a total population exceeding 50 million” can live on what you use to wipe or dry dishware, silverware, cookware, countertops, sinks, bathtubs, etc.
Cracks and knife cuts in cutting boards, plastic or wood, can provide hiding places for bacteria to grow. It gets complicated when wooden chopping blocks are supposed to be sanded when they get crevices or when people are supposed to use different boards for meat and vegetables/fruits and breads, etc.
Simple washing cannot eliminate the germs on fresh fruits and vegetables. IDEXX Labs, a diagnostic testing service in Westbrook, Me. found that 10 out of 39 samples of fresh bean sprouts, all purchased from local grocers had 7,000 E-Coli bacteria per gram. The tester, Elizabeth Ehrenfeld, found that “washing the sprouts did not drop the bacterial counts very much.” The Food Drug Administration inspects less than 2 percent of nonmeat imports and the GAO reports the FDA “cannot be relied upon to keep pathogen-tainted products out of the US food supply.
Trash/waste/recycling is full of germs and bacteria; as a result, waste/trash and recycling bins can smell bad. Killing the bacteria can help reduce or eliminate odors. An air circulation mechanism used together with the UV lights, can also help reduce or eliminate odors.
Ultraviolet lights, which have been used for quite some time in hospital to disinfect surfaces, have not been available for kitchen and bath cabinet usage. The UV lights used in the disclosed technology can emit UV-A, UV-B and UV-C lights; within the set time of exposure to the germicidal effects of the UV lights, 99% of the targeted germs, bacteria and viruses are destroyed. The UV lights mounted within the cabinet, drawer, pullout, rollout tray, tip-out tray, self-standing unit, or portable unit sterilizes the items exposed. Although the drawings are kitchen oriented, the invention is not limited to kitchen use and can be applied to bathrooms, offices, etc. Each embodiment can include reflective/mirror lining, which reflects the UV lights.
The ultraviolet lights are located in the cabinets, drawers, pullouts and tip-out sink trays with a timer/control circuit that activates the UV lights for a set length of time and then shuts them off. A safety switch allows the UV lights to burn only when the unit (cabinet, drawer, pullout, sink tray) is closed. The disclosed technology is designed to fit into the kitchen and bath cabinet manufacturers and office furniture standard sizes.
Disposable batteries, rechargeable batteries or electric current or solar-based energy can power the UV light. The timer will be programmable (from 5 seconds and up) depending on the item(s) to be disinfected. The UV lights are equipped with a parabolic light diffuser (screen/grate) that directs the light to the desired surfaces and/or items. A safety switch (8) is included on each embodiment (but can be located in various places) and prevents the UV light(s) from functioning unless the unit is closed.
A system that suctions the air within the disinfecting filter and emits sanitized air can be used in conjunction with the UV light system described above. The air circulation system may or may not heat the air, in addition to cleaning it.